Caldari State Threatens Sanctions on ORE Syndicate – Amarr Empire Follows Suit

Officials from the Caldari Executive Panel yesterday morning released a statement wherein it was indicated that the Caldari State might impose severe sanctions on the ORE Syndicate, should the Syndicate not back down from its declared intention to release moon mining equipment and starbase materials into SCC markets later this month.

According to the statement, “The ORE Syndicate and its administration have shown no willingness to accommodate the Caldari State nor its neighbors in our wish for galactic stability, both economic and militaristic.” In an official statement from the Imperial Chancellor’s Office just three hours later, the Amarr Empire declared that it placed its full support behind the actions of the Caldari State, prompting speculations that they would follow suit sometime in the next few days.

The news has sent shockwaves through the stock markets, with some investors seeing this as the end of the ORE Syndicate, others seeing it as the beginning of a new era in its history. ORE officials remain mysteriously unruffled by the news; no comment has been forthcoming so far, but an unofficial source stated founder Orion Mashel was “in repose at his home, unperturbed by bristling monoliths.”

The Syndicate’s nonchalant reaction has led to discussion on whether the defiant stance taken by the notorious Curse Alliance early last month with regards to the incident at one of the State’s COLOSSUS qualifier races, where two pilots were shot down and pod-killed by a CA member, may have been the first indication of a subtle power shift in the galactic political arena. Analysts, journalists and social speculants have wondered aloud whether the old empires may be slowly giving ground to a new world order of sorts – according to State Beacon journalist Kisasen Purukai, “a pure meritocracy where survival is dictated by the strongest and the cleverest, and the importance of pure racial boundaries takes a back seat to the importance of shared goals and common interests. It comes as little surprise that Mr. Mashel, shrewd businessman that he is, realizes that these are the people he wants to do business with.”

The Gallente Federation and the Minmatar Republic are reportedly on the fence at the time of going to press, neither nation having given an official response. Fevered debates are reported to be taking place within the Federal Senate, and the Republic’s Tribal Council has convened four times within the last forty-eight hours. Statements are expected from these nations very soon.